A Very Beagle Christmas

Here's Phoenix the Beagle opening his toilet paper present from mom and dad. I thought that it was blog-worthy. Side-note: Phoenix LOVES to eat toilet paper. I have no idea why.

The background audio is a pretty good microcosm of the Gesch family get-togethers.

Happy Birthday Eric!

I know Eric has not yet made it to the blogosphere, but it is his birthday, so I feel that an e-shoutout is not out of line. So Happy Birthday Eric!

This is also a reminder that an entire family is unrepresented on the blog - sounds like more work for the blogfather.

I've arrived!!

Hey, I just found out about this blog-thing. I just checked my 500 e-mails and found this. I'll have to check in more often. Or better yet, just have the kids keep it up.

Nooma Parody: Burrito

Here's a clip from one of Rob Bell's Nooma Videos. He's a pastor at Mars Hill Church in Michigan. These Nooma Videos are extremely popular with youth groups.

Here's a parody of these videos that my friends and I did for our youth group. It's been on YouTube for a month, and it already has 2300 views. I hope you like it. Also- pass this video on to whoever you'd like- we want this to be big.

Christmas 2007

Thanks to Karen & Nick (or "NIKAREN" or "KARENIK" as the Illinois drivers know them) for hosting the party yesterday. It's a ton of work, but we all appreciate it. Please mark your calendars for December 2008. We will have a four hour Christmas Family Feud practice from 8 am to noon on the four Saturdays preceding Christmas.

Christmas - 2007 at Nick & Karen's home

We thank everyone for making an effort to attend our Van Drunen Christmas get-together yesterday. We thank God for each of you. We are so blessed to be able to be with you and feel loved and appreciated. ( You can tell we are getting older - by how we talk.)

The Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down!

A challenge has been received to Yous Kids from Dan Gibson (looks a little something like this guy to the left.) Family Feud, our 6 best players versus the Gibson Family's top 6, Christmas. We would open presents by the Nickster's house and then travel to Dan & Pam's to play on his 70" t.v. (Cheering Section and all.) Then back to Nick & Karen's for supper. (If you don't want to play or cheer, you don't have to go.) Let me know your thoughts.

An Apollo 8 Christmas

I recently learned something from the History channel- 39 years ago tomorrow- Apollo 8, the world's first successful manned lunar orbit mission, orbited the moon in late December of 1968. They witnessed and photographed the world's first "Earth-rise"- the Earth rising "over" the moon.

On Christmas eve, 1968, on what was at that point the highest rated program in American television history, the 3 astronauts had a message for the world- a message of God's good creation. Pretty impressive that these three men would choose this unifying message at this tumultuous time in history (1968- race riots, Chicago DNC riot, MLK, Jr. assassination, Robert Kennedy Assassination, Vietnam, etc.).

Play the youtube clip for the audio- I'm guessing video back in 1968 was difficult to muster (hence the blackness out the window the entire time)- so here's the color earth-rise photo:

We hit the bigtime!

Google: flexsteel impact couch
And watch the magic.

Grandma And Grandpa

Has anyone told Grandma and Grandpa about this yet? I would hope that they would be here to check some of this out. And is there any way we can get that Calender to work? I don't see any Christmas parties on there.